OLD AGE PENSIONS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13872, 5 October 1908, Page 6

OLD AGE PENSIONS.

HALF A MILLION CLAIMS. [FKOJI OUR OWN" CORRESPONDENT.] London*, (August 28. The regulations recently, issued by _ the Treasury, in pursuance of section 10 of the Old Age Pensions Act, in many respects are a mere repetition,©! the clauses of that Act. : The final paragraph indicates the desire of the Treasury and the Local Government Board that every claim made this year shall be investigated and determined before January 1, 1909. The Inland' Revenue authorities appear to recognise the seriousness of-the demands that will be made on their officers' time, for they have given instructions that no leave of absence is to be granted after October 1— the date from which claims for pensions may be submitted for investigation. They have also directed that such relief from ordinary, duties as may be considered necessary shall be afforded to officers engaged in pension work. The total number of officers available for pension work will barely exceed 1600, and, as the number of relief officers (assistants) does not exceed 600, just two-thirds of the total number employed as pension officers will also have to attend to their ordinary duties as excise officers, except in cases where these duties relate solely to establishment, dog, gun, and game licenses. Assuming, however, that the 1600 officers are able to devote their whole time, between October 1 and December 31, to pension duties, and that they have to deal only with genuine claims, they will be required to investigate about 500,000 cases the estimated number of pensions— within 77 working days. This gives an average of about 300 claims to each officer for the three months, or four claims a day. A much greater number than this will have to be dealt with by an officer in a town area, and a much smaller number in a country station, but, as regards the latter, the smallness in number will not compensate for the time necessarily .occupied in making long and frequent journeys. THE GERMAN SCHEME.

Mr. Lloyd George regards the .working of the German pensions scheme as a wonderful piece of organisationa, marvellous triumph of machinery. In fact, lie is enthusiastic about the machinery and the scheme itself. "It was not merely the machinery and organisation that impressed me. The system is one which provides nob merely against old age. Jfc goes, much; further; it provides against the breakdown of the worker before he reaches the stage of senility, and also against sickness and invalidity; and I understand that it is now proposed to extend it to include a provision for the widows and orphans. At the present moment 36 millions a year are raised for this purpose. The balance of 17 millions required for the completion of the scheme it is proposed to raise partly by doubling the State contribution (which is now two and a-half millions), and or. to the rest by increasing the contributions of workmen and employers." Asked whether his investigations of Germany's contributory system of old age pensions had shaken his conviction that the hot -contributory system adopted here was the. best for the country, Mi'. Lloyd George replied: "It han not"' shaken it in the. slightest. I' still think, not only that cvcLy man and woman over 70 ought tc be provided for, but .that such provision should bo-absolutely afc the.£xj>eiis& pi' the.